The "Killer" Blockchain Application? On February 14, four witnesses (an analyst in Cybersecurity Policy from the Congressional
Research Service, the director of NIST's Information Technology Laboratory, the vice president
of food safety of Walmart, the vice president of blockchain technologies of IBM
and the Associate Clinical Professor of Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law) showed
up in 2318 Rayburn House Office Building, to testify about blockchain technology before the
Subcommittee on Oversight and Subcommittee on Research and Technology. The
witnesses answered questions from members of the two subcommittees. Summary
I attended this hearing and below are my summarized findings, in case you didn’t have the time to attend this mind-blowing hearing.
Mr. Chris A. Jaikaran, analyst in Cybersecurity Policy,
covered blockchain applications in cryptocurrencies, healthcare, identity management, and supply chain management. He discussed certain pitfalls of the technology.
Dr. Ch…

We noted, with interest, testimony before the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday, February 6th concerning cryptocurrencies. The heads of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission, J. Christopher Giancarlo and Jay Clayton, respectively, testified about cryptocurrencies.
Their comments focused on fraud in the initial coin offering marketplace. An initial coin offering uses crowdfunding to issue cryptocurrency, which is then used as capital for a startup. Blockchain is a new technology used to structure cryptocurrencies like bitcoin. It is believed to have a structure in which falsification is extremely difficult relative to conventional centralized-management systems and is expected to be applied to a wide variety of fields.
Of course, this hearing was not about protecting the public: It was about turf. The SEC does not have direct authority over cryptocurrencies or ICOs. Congress will probably explicitly give the agency direct authority to re…

As we noted on 12/30/17 when we released our 2018 Economic Forecast, "We anticipate the following:
1. Interest rates. Increasing.
2. Market volatility. We expect a major spike.
3. Bitcoin. Gaining traction, especially in light of increased traditional market volatility.
4. Equity returns. Lower than 2017.
5. Black Unemployment. Black unemployment falls at the end of a sustained period of domestic economic growth and falls with a decline in immigration. This is counterbalanced, however, by increasing racism in general and specifically negative, anti-Black racial attitudes. Given an increase in the latter, we expect Black unemployment to increase toward the end of 2018, despite positive headwinds from reduced immigration."
Black unemployment was reported at 7.7%. The Dow is down 1,500 points. For more, see: forecast2018.eventbrite.com

The Impact Investing Forum will look at many of the asset classes that encompass this space. We invite you to join us and meet top influencers, experienced investors, money managers, and service providers that are leading the charge in this ever growing space. Themes of defining impact investing, portfolio construction, asset class opportunities, and the role of the investor are just a few of the stimulating topics to be covered at this event.

Five days after the trump administration proclaimed that "African-American unemployment stands at the lowest rate ever recorded,” the US Department of Labor reported on Friday that Black unemployment for the month of January jumped to 7.7%.

As we noted on 12/30/17 in our Fully Adjusted Return Economic Forecast summary,

"Black unemployment falls at the end of a sustained period of domestic economic growth and falls with a decline in immigration. This is counterbalanced, however, by increasing racism in general and specifically negative, anti-Black racial attitudes. Given an increase in the latter, we expect Black unemployment to increase toward the end of 2018, despite positive headwinds from reduced immigration."